SALT LAKE CITY — Sen. Orrin Hatch, the longest-serving senator in Utah history, was honored Wednesday by the Utah Legislature for his many decades of public service.

A resolution by the Utah Legislature designated Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2018, as “Orrin G. Hatch Day” in recognition of Hatch’s singular legislative accomplishments and his dedicated service to the people of Utah.

The resolution refers to some of Hatch’s legislation as “the most significant bipartisan achievements of modern times,” lists some of the positions he has held in the Senate and states that he has done “immeasurable good for the state of Utah and the nation.”

Read full resolution below or watch video in media player above

Hatch announced on Jan. 2 that he would be retiring from the Senate after his current term. At a recent Lincoln Day Breakfast held by the Washington County Republican Party, Hatch told attendees his final year was “not a victory lap, but a sprint to the finish.”

“I plan to finish strong,” he said at the event. “My plan is to go big and to go home.”

Full resolution text is as follows:

Be it resolved by the Legislature of the state of Utah, the Governor concurring therein:

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch has dutifully served the people of Utah in the United States Senate for more than four decades;

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch has passed more bills into law than any legislator alive today, including some of the most significant bipartisan achievements of modern times;

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch, as the longest-serving member and former chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has long sought to protect the integrity of our courts, strengthen privacy protections, defend intellectual property rights, and clarify our nation’s criminal code;

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch has played an indispensable role in the confirmation of more than 1,800 Article III judges, including every sitting Supreme Court justice;

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch was recently named “The Most Effective Senator” in the nation by the Center for Effective Lawmaking–a nonpartisan research organization;

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch has long stood as an ardent defender of religious liberty, from his authorship of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act to his unwavering advocacy on behalf of faith-based organizations across the country;

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch, as the lead sponsor of the Hatch-Waxman Act, is today widely esteemed as the founder of the modern generic drug industry;

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch helped improve access, mobility, and quality of life for millions of Americans with his sponsorship of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act;

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch authored the historic Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act, providing a legal framework for a multi-billion-dollar industry that has created countless jobs in the state of Utah;

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch, as the longest-serving Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, provided critical counsel and timely analysis on some of the most consequential national security issues of our time;

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch, as chairman of the Senate Republican High-Tech Task Force, has been integral to the development of Silicon Slopes and Utah’s technology industry;

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch, as chairman of the Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee, worked to enact laws that have improved our nation’s health and well-being and that have helped to ensure an economically vibrant workforce;

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch, as chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, has championed policies to promote a pro-trade, pro-growth agenda, including the recent overhaul of our nation’s tax code;

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch serves as the president pro tempore of the United States Senate;

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch holds the distinction of being the longest-serving Senator in Utah’s history; and

WHEREAS, Orrin Hatch has done immeasurable good for the state of Utah and the nation:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of the state of Utah, the Governor concurring therein, designates Wednesday, February 21, 2018, as “Orrin G. Hatch Day” in recognition of Senator Hatch’s singular legislative accomplishments and dedicated service to the people of Utah.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be sent to the Majority and Minority Leaders of the United States Senate and the members of Utah’s congressional delegation

3 Comments

The Headline itself points to a HUGE problem with our country’s current political construct. “Legislature” and “career” do not belong together. Hatch should have been gone long ago, before his “public service” evolved to being a typical functioning cog to the entire corrupt system.